Dark Celebration (22 page)

"Oh, you two are just plain bad," Jaxon said. "You like stirring the pot. Gregori is bound to get you both back, you know."

A glimmer of a smirk flitted across Mikhail's features and was gone. "It will be well worth it."

Lucian nodded and reached for his twin, automatically sharing the information. Gabriel responded on their private mental path.
Mikhail was here earlier and I could not resist allowing him to give you the news
. There was laughter in his voice.
I certainly plan on being present when our prince makes his first demand as a father-in-law
.

Lucian's fingers tightened around Jaxon's. That small shared moment of amusement, of love and laughter, was due to his lifemate. He had been without emotion for so long—loving his twin, yet never actually feeling the emotion. Over the centuries the memory had begun to fade and it had been alarming. He had walked in darkness without hope, until she came into his life.

Jaxon leaned down to brush a kiss on the top of his head in a rare public gesture of affection. Even with her stepfather dead, she still couldn't get over the reticence she had developed to protect those she cared about. Lucian was always the one to make the first move, to take her hand, put his arm around her, and her first instinct was always to look around her with wary eyes—stiffen—and pull away. He was slowly getting her over it, and every small demonstration of affection when others were around was a huge step forward.

Lucian rubbed his chin. "I think we should commemorate this event with pictures. It would serve us well in the coming years if we had such a thing documented."

Mikhail leaned forward slightly, his small smile softening the hard lines in his face. "Surely you are not considering—blackmail."

"Well, yes, as a matter of fact. We could hold this over his head for centuries."

"Poor Gregori. It isn't fair to conspire against him this way," Jaxon objected. She frowned. "Although come to think about it, maybe he does deserve it for being such a male chauvinist."

Mikhail's eyebrow shot up. "And Lucian isn't?"

Her mischievous smile lit up her eyes again. "He tries desperately, but fortunately he has me to straighten him out."

"Lucky me," Lucian said dryly.

She sent her foot swinging against his leg a second time. "You
are
lucky. I keep telling you, but you keep forgetting."

Lucian laughed softly. Mikhail had never pictured the warrior laughing and relaxed, and for some reason the sound lifted the burden on his shoulders just a little more. Good things were happening with their species. Maybe it wasn't happening as fast as Mikhail liked, but change was taking place.

"I wanted to ask you about something I barely recall centuries ago. I was just a boy and remember very little."

"I cannot promise to remember, but I will try."

"In the old days, there was a woman who lived in the village. I do not even remember her lifemate or if she had one. I was too young to really care about such things. She healed the earth. Do you remember her?"

Lucian frowned. "I did not stay in the villages much, even when you were a boy, Mikhail. To remember one person—a woman…" He shook his head. "The villagers, especially the women, avoided Gabriel and me, often fleeing when we were sighted."

"Try, Lucian," Mikhail urged. "She would not have fled in fear from you. She was powerful in her own right. She would walk and flowers and grass would grow beneath her feet. It could be very important to us."

Lucian nodded slowly, his frown deepening as he tried to pull up the ancient memory. The village busy with people living life—a life he never thought he could ever have. Families. Laughter. He had avoided it all as much as possible.

Jaxon's hand slid into his hair, teased the strands of hair along the back of his neck, sending a shiver of awareness down his spine, spreading warmth through his body and into his heart.

He forced his mind back to the old days, searching through bittersweet memories until he found the village where Dubrinsky had lived. Children ran together in small groups. So many nameless faces he had tried not to notice turning away from him. A serene face smiling at him, nodding, acknowledging him even as the children trailed after her. Life sprang up from nothing beneath her feet, green stalks, bright colored flowers, a rich tapestry forming on the ground while the little ones stared in awe.

"She came from a rare and much respected lineage. There were few with her talent. She was beautiful, her hair long and dark, and she always stood tall and straight and looked men in the eye."

Jaxon smacked him on the back of the head. "I doubt he needs those precise details," she said. "And just why would she need to be looking you in the eye?"

Mikhail tried to hide his shock. Every Carpathian alive was in awe of this man, but his lifemate treated him—exactly in the way Raven treated the prince of the Carpathian people. He swallowed his smile and glanced away as Lucian reached up to circle her waist and drag her from the arm of the chair onto his lap. She struggled for a minute and then subsided, allowing him to hold her.

"I remember watching her walk into a barren field. Within minutes foliage sprang up everywhere around her."

"Did she attend births? Or treat the soil before a child was to be born—or even conceived?" It was a long shot, but Mikhail was ready to grasp at the smallest of chances.

Lucian's dark eyebrows shot up. "What are you thinking, Mikhail?"

"Shea said something about the soil being riddled with toxins earlier this evening. As I was flying over the battleground scarred and poisoned by the undead, I noticed one section had been healed. The soil was the darkest, richest soil I have seen in centuries. And then Raven mentioned that she and several other women got together last night in mineral pools and the soil and water were different. This evening she is able to conceive. I have heard whispers that other women have experienced the same."

Both men looked at Jaxon. She held up both hands, palms out, shaking her head adamantly. "Not me. Don't even think about it either. I'm just getting used to this lifemate thing. And in case you think I can heal the earth, think again. I've killed every potted plant I've ever tried to grow both before and after the conversion. I'm not your earth healer."

"Have you heard anything about this, Jaxon?" Lucian asked. His fingers curled around the nape of her neck in a slow massage. "Have any of the women mentioned it to you?"

"No, but I can ask Francesca. She seems to always be in the know about everything. I don't know how she does it all with a baby and a teenager."

Mikhail scrubbed a hand over his face suddenly looking tired. "It was a long shot anyway. I cannot remember who the woman was or her lineage, nor do I remember if she aided with birthing."

"I will ask my brother and the other ancients if they remember more of this woman, but truly, Mikhail, if there is such a woman in our midst, we have only to ask her to step forward."

"The answer cannot be so simple."

"Maybe it is one piece of a puzzle we must work out—a very important piece."

"If we find this woman and she is as important as I hope she is, this celebration will be the best thing we have ever done."

"You are worried. The attack on Skyler and Alexandria?"

Of course Gabriel would have kept Lucian informed. Mikhail nodded. "I have been uneasy for a couple of evenings now. It has definitely put me on edge."

"We went out there and looked around," Jaxon said. "Someone had come from the direction of the inn on a sled and was in a snow blind—a very clever one, manmade—about half a mile from where Skyler and Alexandria were hurt. The feeling of power lingered, but it didn't feel Carpathian." Jaxon bit at her lower lip, puzzling it out. "I've been really trying to get a feel for the different energy fields. That's all Carpathian magic really is, a manipulation of energy, and this felt off to me."

A small smile lit Lucian's eyes briefly at the flare of surprise on Mikhail's face. "Did I mention Jaxon is a
great
cop? She tracks nearly as well as I do now."

"You said something felt 'off to you," Mikhail prodded. "Off like vampire?"

"There was an evil taint to it," Jaxon admitted. "Lucian felt it through me, but couldn't on his own, and that really bothered me. If they've found a way to block their identities from the hunters, all of you could be in real trouble."

"They have been doing that for some time," Lucian reminded her, his hand sliding down her thigh in a small gesture of assurance.

"Not like this, Lucian," she objected. "You felt the difference. It wasn't completely vampire—but still stank of evil." There was worry in her tone.

"It has occurred to me that if our enemies strike against the women and children," Mikhail confided, "then they would have the best chance for eradicating our species altogether. I do not know how much you know about the group of humans dedicated to wiping out our species. We always refer to them as the society. The vampires have tricked them, infiltrated their ranks and used them as puppets. The dark mage Xavier may be alive as well as his grandson. If that is so, Razvan is the first Dragonseeker to ever turn, and he is something we have never faced. His sister, Natalya, tells me he is a brilliant strategist when it comes to planning a war. No doubt he's already come to the same conclusions I have regarding the best way to strike the most devastating blow to our race."

Lucian nodded. "I have believed for some time it is inevitable they will begin to strike against our women."

"And still you allow your lifemate to hunt and destroy the vampire."

Lucian's fingers tightened around Jaxon's in warning when she would have protested. "What better way to keep her safe than to teach her how to survive when she is attacked? Jaxon has remarkable skills and natural instincts. It would be a crime to stop her from learning how to kill the undead. And before you object, I do not think all our women should be out hunting vampires. But Jaxon is a special case, as are Natalya and Destiny. You cannot suppress their instincts, and let their abilities go to waste, so I have done all I can to prepare her for the hunt."

Mikhail sighed. "In the old days, those with lifemates did not hunt the vampire. Now it is a necessity."

"I have hunted for centuries, as have most of the ancient hunters—and Gregori. We know no other way of life anymore. It is not just a necessity, it is who we are."

"Why did the lifemates keep them from hunting if they were more experienced?" Jaxon asked.

"Because even when we had women and children, we knew how precious they were," Mikhail explained. "If we lose the male, we also lose the female, and that was not an option for us. Now we may have no choice but to allow our women to fight as well."

"Not all the women, Mikhail," Lucian reminded. "Only those who have the skills and the desire to fight. Women like Jaxon and Destiny."

Mikhail sighed. "And Natalya. She was in the thick of the battle. She told me that her twin brother, Razvan, fathered several children. Colby, Raphael's lifemate, is one of his daughters."

"The Dragonseeker women always were unpredictable. They always will be. If Razvan had other children besides Colby, we need to find and protect them. I take it Dominic will be going out as soon as he is healed to look for his kin."

"It will take time to heal his wounds. Even with our best healers, it has been difficult. Francesca will try again soon and if we find this woman who can heal the earth, perhaps she can help by enriching the soil where he lays."

Mikhail stood up. "I must go. The celebration is in a couple of hours and I have several visits still to make. I know I have no need to remind you to be on the alert, but still—I feel I would be remiss if I didn't."

Lucian stood as well, and once again gripped Mikhail's forearms in a gesture of respect. "You have my full allegiance, Mikhail. Should there be need, call to me—I will fight at your side, always."

A brief smile failed to take the shadows from the prince's eyes. "The Daratrazanoff family has always been at the side of the Dubrinskys. We fight as one."

Jaxon lifted a hand to the leader of the Carpathians as he left the house. "He seemed so sad, Lucian, I felt like crying," she said. "And I never cry." She pressed a hand to her aching heart. "Sorrow came off of him in waves."

Lucian swept his arm around her. "You're always so sensitive to other people's feelings. Mikhail has a heavy burden to bear—to keep our species from extinction. He still remembers the old ways, gone now for all time. Back then our people thrived and lived together in a society. It is his responsibility to guide us into a new life, one where we can survive and live in harmony with other species around us. Like me, he cannot help but look back at what we had and look into the future with worry. I do not envy him his task. It is a terrible weight to carry on his shoulders."

"Do you really think our enemies are going to go after the women and children?" She swallowed hard, closing her eyes against the memories flooding her of her own brother murdered by a mentally ill man. Her heart pounded at the thought of finding young Skyler or one of the infants brutally murdered.

"We will watch over them."

"But we already know Skyler has been targeted," she protested. "I tried not to care for her, but it's impossible. She's wonderful—and so young and old at the same time. Gabriel is worried about this Dimitri claiming her, and now this." She swept a hand through her hair, clearly agitated. "I feel like locking her up."

Lucian burst out laughing, carrying her hand to his mouth to press kisses into the center of her palm. "Now you know how I feel—how every male feels about protecting his lifemate and his children."

She scowled at him. "I don't need protection, Lucian. I'm capable of looking after myself. Skyler's a teenager. What if this Dimitri character tries to carry her off?"

"Dimitri is added protection for Skyler. I do not understand how she triggered his instincts at such a young age, but she has and he can do no other than to ensure her health, safety and happiness. It may take him a little while to conquer the demon, but I have every faith that he will."